Abstract
Although participatory approaches are becoming more widespread, to date vulnerability assessments have largely been conducted by technocrats and have paid little attention to underlying causes of vulnerability, such as inequality and biased governance systems. Participatory assessments that recognise the social roots of vulnerability, however, are critical in helping individuals and institutions rethink their understanding of and responses to climate change impacts. This paper interrogates the contribution of Oxfam’s Vulnerability and Risk Assessment methodology to enabling transformation at both personal and institutional levels. Three Vulnerability and Risk Assessment exercises were conducted in Malawi, Botswana and Namibia by one or more of the authors in 2015 and 2016. Reflecting on these workshops, we explore the contribution that a process like the Vulnerability and Risk Assessment may bring to transformation. We conclude that these types of inclusive and representative participatory approaches can shift narratives and power dynamics, allow marginal voices to be heard, build cross–scalar relationships and enable the co-creation of solutions. Such approaches can play a key role in moving towards transformational thinking and action, especially in relation to climate change adaptation.
Highlights
Action research in the form of truly participatory, representative and inclusive vulnerability assessments may represent a much-needed shift in risk-reduction strategies
Many vulnerability assessments undertaken in the context of climate change work have followed this traditional, technocratic approach
NGOs and civil society organisations have often filled this gap, albeit almost exclusively at a local level. Information about these participatory vulnerability assessments have seldom been published in peer-reviewed journals, which limits their sectorial impact
Summary
Action research in the form of truly participatory, representative and inclusive vulnerability assessments may represent a much-needed shift in risk-reduction strategies. Can such a participatory approach help stakeholders to develop new skills and build relationships and networks across scales; it can give a voice to otherwise marginalised individuals or groups, thereby building trust, empowering communities and creating opportunities to shift hierarchical structures of power and authority (see Butler et al, 2016). It is recognised that processes that genuinely enables stakeholder representation and participation can lead to more beneficial social and environmental outcomes (De Vente, Reed, Stringer, Valente, & Newig, 2016) They increase the potential for transformation by questioning prevailing values, norms and governance; developing new ways of working that are based on collaboratively-derived visions for an alternative development pathway and providing a platform for the establishment of new partnerships and cooperatives, including through community self-organisation. The real test of the long-term sustainability of these objectives – and of their expected outcome of promoting or achieving transformation – is in the followup and in subsequent efforts to consolidate relationships between stakeholders
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